Please prepare a brief paper (4–6 pages, double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font on 8.5 x 11 inch white paper) based on current peer-reviewed scientific literature (i.e., books or journal articles) that reviews or discusses a topic from the field of physical meteorology. Your goal is to explain to the reader the current state of the scientific literature on your subject (i.e., you are writing a literature review). You may select the topic from the lecture material or choose something in which you have a particular interest. This is a wide range of topics since the scope of physical meteorology generally includes almost any process or phenomenon of the atmosphere with the exception of dynamic processes. The paper must include a reference list prepared following AMS guidelines. Submission via Moodle is required.
I will review a draft of your research paper during a 15-minute one-on-one virtual meeting that you will schedule with me on or before 5 p.m. on Friday, 8 March 2024. I expect that most meetings will occur during the week of March 4, but we can meet earlier if you wish. The goal is to provide you with some tips and identify trouble spots so that the final draft meets my expectations (which include proper spelling and grammar, reference formatting, adherence to page limits, clarity, and the overall professional quality of the paper). I will assign grades for this meeting using the following criteria:
A (100 pts): Complete draft of four to six pages with at least five peer-reviewed references.
B (90 pts): Three to five pages and/or fewer than five peer-reviewed references.
C (75 pts): One to two pages with inadequate references.
D (60 pts): Show up to the meeting with a topic, but with less than a page of writing and/or inadequate references.
D- (50 pts): Show up to the meeting without a research topic.
F (0 pts): No appointment or fail to show up to an appointment.
Note that it is your responsibility to schedule the meeting prior to the March 8 deadline.
You are welcome to study a broad subject (such as clouds or lightning), but you can simplify your life immensely by focusing your research on a more specific phenomenon (e.g., noctilucent clouds or sprites). After all, you need to fit everything into fewer than six pages! Of course, your paper should contain proper spelling and grammar. Your grade will depend heavily on your writing skills. When preparing your references, recall that you must include only those references that you cite in the body of the paper. See the AMS Reference Guide for instructions about how to put together your list of references, which should begin on a separate page (not counted in the 6-page limit) and should start with the bold heading REFERENCES. Citations in the text (e.g., Godfrey et al. 2002) should follow the guidelines in the AMS Authors' Guide. I encourage you to include figures as appropriate. Note that the figures and their captions remain independent of the required page limits. If you have any questions, please ask!